This application relates to polyphthalamide/poly(phenylene ether) blends and more particularly to reinforced polyphthalamide/poly(phenylene ether) blends.
Glass filled poly(phenylene ether)/polyamide 66 (GF-PPE/PA66) blends have been used in applications such as water pumps and water meters for long time. The morphology of PPE/PA66 blends can be defined as “islands-and-sea” where PPE particles are the dispersed phase (as islands) and PA66 is the continuous phase (as sea). As a result, PPE/PA66 blends are commonly recognized in industry as modified nylons with superior performance such as higher heat resistance, better dimension stability, less warpage and sagging, and less moisture absorption. Yet due to the inherent nature of PA66, PPE/PA66 blends are also susceptible to moisture induced property changes such as reduction of flexural modulus and tensile strength as the moisture content in the nylon matrix increases. In some cases when elevated temperatures are employed and/or aggressive chemicals are added such as chlorine in order to purify water, neat GF PA66 and GF PPE/PA66 blends may result in earlier part failure caused by severe nylon hydrolysis.
There is an ongoing need in the art for reinforced polyamide (nylon) blends with improved high temperature hydrolytic stability.